Framed
by dethlypoison
Summary: His pursuit of Kumiko is being mocked and he won't allow anyone to interfere.
1. Chapter 1

**This story is based on the manga but I altered Shinohara, making him as a cop like the J-Drama.**

**I don't know where I want this story to go but I hope you enjoy reading this while I continue to murder myself. :P**

** It is my first fic, so it's probably not very good. D:**

**(Yes, I edited and changed a few things in preparation for the last chapter.)

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Tangling and untangling his fingers in his red hair, Shin questioned the decision to approach and enter the house in front of him. Perhaps, heading back home would be the smartest decision. Could he really enter a house full of Yakuza after waiting five hours to respond to a call. It hadn't seemed so important at the time because he was alerted of all situations but now that he was thinking about it, it was probably something severe. Kyo wouldn't it share it with him over the phone. He cursed himself for having fallen back after he'd hung up on Kyo. He turned around, going back into the darkness he'd come from.

Two silhouettes approached him. He couldn't help but think that they looked a little too menacing to be normal folk, walking around. He wondered if they were going to the Kuroda house, if they would react like almost everyone else did with a loud and noisy greeting, calling him by his _nickname_.

"Oi! Don't drag me!" Shin shouted as the two grabbed him, one on each side, crushing his arms with unneeded force.

The thought that they may be part of Ooedo slipped his mind, he felt in danger. He slipped his foot in front of one dark silhouettes, tripping the first man, bringing him crashing down to the ground. Shin went down with him but his arm was held upwards, in an awkward position because of the second man who was still standing. The fallen man's grip has loosened and he wriggled his other arm free as quick as he could though it was painful. As he stood straight, he swung around and elbowed the second man in the face. The grip was loosened allowing for him to pull back and swing.

"Good work." Muttered a rough, familiar voice with a small laugh. "That was very good work!" The voice praised through the darkness. "Hai!" He said in a triumphant yell. "Now pile 'em up!" He commanded, trying to encourage Shin to do it with a rough elbow in the ribs.

"No thanks, Kyo-san..." Shin replied, feeling annoyed at the implication he could ever do something so lame.

"It's an acquired taste, Red Lion." Kyo commented.

Walking out from behind Shin, he kicked the other two in the legs and snarled at them, ordering them to get up. His feet did not cease their persistant nuding until the two slowly got up. They wobbled, and Shin smothered a smile.

"Sorry-" Shin started quickly.

"Don't bother. They're too drunk to know the difference. I just wanted to make sure you were ready."

The redhead's shoulder was gripped with shocking force and Shin found himself being dragged back towards the house he had chosen to leave. Shin didn't resist, in fact, he was flooded with relief that he had met Kyo on his way home. He was beginning to regret the fight with the two Yakuza men, though. They grumbled incoherent pieces of a conversation that sounded deadly.

"Why so late?" Kyo asked, finally breaking the silence. "Did something go down?"

"Just a rough day." Shin mumbled as Kyo opened the door for them. "I ended up falling back to sleep after you called."

Kyo brought his finger up to his lips before yelling, "Tadaima!"

He nodded his understanding to Shin. There was silence and then a loud crash from further inside the house. No one moved, all listening but there was silence once more. An eerie feeling creeped up on Shin, settling into his stomach as he remembered Kyo's call. A _situation_. Shin's face went pale as he thought he heard Kyo gulp.

"Is it a good idea to be here?" Shin asked, desperately trying to not sound nervous.

Kyo shrugged, grabbing the kid's shoulder before he could run for it. Reluctantly, Shin followed Kyo deeper into the house. Another crash rang through the house. A weird metallic sound made them stop in their tracks. Fear slid down both their spines. They no long felt the will to go towards the sounds that would no doubt bring them both pain. Kyo laughed nervously not wanting Shin to know he was scared and kept on going against his better judgement. Stopping infront of the living room door, Kyo mentally pepped himself, building himself up.

Kyo opened the door and then shut the void as quickly as it had been allowed to reign free.

"O-Oujo! Put that down!" Kyo cried to the woman behind the door.

The door began to slide open without Kyo touching it.

"Yamaguchi. That's dangerous, y'know." Shin said, stepping back, almost instinctively behind Kyo.

Snarling at Shin from behind a long, unsheathed sword, Kumiko stood, pointing it directly towards the young man behind the Kumi's aniki. Kumiko swung the sword to the side almost teasingly, gesturing for Kyo to move out of the way but he stood his ground.

"Oi! You!" Kumiko hissed, taking another approach and locking her eyes with Shin's.

His ex-homeroom-teacher shoved the man in front of him out of the way like he was a toy and approached him, the tip of the blade unmoving, still pointed with accuracy, coming straight at his mouth. She stopped when she was about an inch away from his skin and swung it down to her side. With her hair down and make-up on, she didn't look any less scary. He could tell she was pissed off in a way, he'd only seen a few times. Angry enough he could feel the malicious aura and it made a chill run the course of his spine. Pain stung his cheek as she assaulted him with a hard slap.

"Mangy fucking brat! How fucking dare you!" She screamed, clutching the sword at her side tighter.

Shin's eyes flicked away from her face, towards the sword in her hand and then back at her face. He resisted the urge to comfort the sting on his face before asking, "How dare I what?"

"You just take on every fight that comes your way, right? You can't say no, can you? Can't ask why, can you? You don't think of consequences. You just do whatever you like, don't you?" She snarled, started to rant.

"What are you talking about, Yamaguchi?" He asked, his voice turning edgy.

"I'm talking about how in the world it was possible to get an _entire_ group of thugs after you! More than fifty would love nothing more than to have your fucking head!"

"Not possible. I don't know what you're talking about." Shin said calmly, moving his hands to the pockets of his jeans.

Dropping her sword to the ground, her hand switched to clutching his shirt, tightly. With a hard yank, she pulled his face closer, staring him in the eyes but it was as she'd anticipated, in his eyes she saw no hesitiation, they did not waver, blink nor look away.e

"Damn!" She muttered, releasing his shirt and throwing him back. She turned around. "Listen Shin, another kumi who have had ties with Ooedo for a long time came to us blaming a warehouse was burned by you after beating up three of their punks. They described someone who looks like you, even called you that stupid name."

Shin frowned. "I did beat up three punks today." He admitted but the fire he saw in her eyes made him choose to explain. "They approached me first and swinging. I wasn't going to take the beat or run away."

"Young Master Red Lion, wouldn't do that!" Kyo said coming to Shin's defense.

"YOUNG MASTER RED LION?" She scoffed. "CUT THAT BULLSHIT NAME RIGHT NOW! I can't believe they called _him_ the successor! A whole 'nother load of bullshit for me to deal with!" She screamed into her hands.

"He'd be a great..." Kyo hesitated about what he was about to say. "I gave him that name!" Kyo huffed.

"Lots of people have red hair in the city! Why does it have to be me? Plus, if you guys have been so close, then why would they automatically suspect me? Someone tipped them off and onto me." Shin reasoned.

"You didn't exactly have the best rep before Kudou, anyways and being involved with us doesn't make it any better. We're powerful but we're still hated. So, you'd better stay away from trouble while I'm sorting this out! One wrong move and I'll have your head myself!" She threatened.

"Whatever." He said, dismissing it with a little smile. Normally, I'd interfere..." He murmured, then his voice changed and he continued, "... but since you seem to care so much, I can be a good boy."

That annoying comment had rushed the heat from her temper to her cheeks. What an unnecessary thing to say, she thought. That stupid brat, always acting so calm! Yet... she knew herself enough to recognize that sometimes, she needed his leveled head.

"Oujo's had a hard day." Kyo said quickly, trying to fix the mood. "Let's go get drinks..." Kyo mumbled and grabbed Shin by the shoulder again, leading him away as Kumiko retreated to sit down.

"NONE FOR THE KID!" Kumiko yelled automatically.

"Kid?" Shin scoffed. "I'm an adult now."

He picked up the cup he was brought by Tetsu and brought it to his lips. He shot her a defiant look over the rim before slugging it down. He felt his mouth revolt against the taste, but he kept a straight face and held out the cup for more. She shot him a dirty look but she knew he was right. He wasn't her student anymore, and he wasn't a kid, especially not after that confession. He was nineteen and he could drink with her and Kyo if he wanted to. She knew he wasn't much of a drinker though, he only wanted to because her comment was a low blow.

A helpless feeling creeped over her as she watched Shin drink one after another. There was nothing she could do to stop him now that he was 19 but she was beginning to think that maybe he would get a little too drink. This was the hard stuff, not that sleazy brand that Minami would come up with.

Shin... You are ridiculous, she thought to herself.

"Yamaguchi. I still don't get it. They're supposed to be allies but they said it was me. Why?" Shin asked her.

"I don't get it either. I believe you... You wouldn't stoop so low as to torch a building." Kumiko said nodding, downing another drink.

"Then why does it have to be me?" Shin said, putting his chin in his hand.

Kumiko stifled the laughter that arose in her throat. "I don't know but whoever it is, we're going to find it out... Right, Kyo?"

"Hai, Oujo! Now, now. Forget this, let's have more drinks!" Kyo grinned as he watched them, sitting across from each other. He refilled their cups and watched them continue to shoot each other dirty looks and down the sake simultaneously.

SLAM! - Kumiko put her cup down on the table and was staring visciously across. She was buzzed and bit out of it.

"He's drunk!" She accused pointing a shaky finger.

"Drunk? Who's drunk? I'm fine! Here, fill it!" Shin said unhappily, shoving his cup towards Kyo.

Kumiko shook her head, knowing she was more immune than Shin was. She had never seen him completely wasted, only the aftermath. She felt her mouth twitch with unhappiness as she remember his "No, don't touch me there," mumbles.

What would he be be like drunk? It would be nice if he was a fool, she could rest easy knowing he wasn't always so collected. Kumiko's anger had disappeared now replaced by anticipation of seeing Shin's foolish drunk-side.

"Don't drink soo much, Kumiko-chan." Shin sang again, happily egging her on.

"You shouldn't be talking." She shot back but her face flushed. "H-HEY! WHO SAID YOU COULD CALL ME THAT?" Kumiko yelled at him.

"Don't I always call you that, though, Kumiko-chan?" Shin sang again.

He knew he was drunk, it had hit him a few moments ago. Every stress, worry, doubt and nuisance he'd felt disappeared in that moment. He did not care about a thing probably because he was comparing the way his head felt to jelly. There was a grin stuck on his face and when he looked at Kumiko blushing, he couldn't help but lean across the table.

Fingers on his forehead, pushed him back to his place on the other side of the table forcefully, a scary look on her face. Kumiko watched him. As he fell, then raised back up.

Kyo watched the entertainment quietly, holding back a chuckle. Perhaps, the plan would go a little better than expected. He stood, unable to watch the Young Master make a fool of himself. Leaving them alone together was what Ryuichiro had ordered, so alone they would be. He shrugged off the thought of Shin hurting his precious Oujo, Shin wasn't capable of that.

"Kyo! Kyo don't leave me with him!" Kumiko begged but Kyo only smiled mischeviously and slid out the door.

"You're all alone." Shin commented, almost taunting her as the door closed.

"Kuuuumiiii-ko-chan." He purred getting closer to her still. "Blushing again, are we?" He said in a low voice.

She didn't say anything to his question, she just studied him carefully. She watched his eyes flick down to her lips, then he licked his own. She registered what that meant and immediately viewed him as the red lion toying with prey. But she wouldn't be his prey! No way!

_Kumiko... it's okay. He won't do anything reckless. He's drunk, not crazy. He knows I'd kill him... WHAT THE FUCK!_

Shin lunged forward and swung her down to the ground. He found his way ontop of her, pinning her with all his drunken weight. Panick over came here, being in a submitting position to this boy. She went to push him again but he grabbed her hands and planted them beside her head. He pinned her and leaned down close.

"Stop it! You don't know what you're doing!" Kumiko hissed.

"I know exactly what I'm doing." He whispered with a smile.

She felt his whisper hot against her lips. She knew there was only a small space distancing their mouths. She inhaled sharply as he ran a tongue over bottom lip. He put his lips on hers. Then, they gently moved against her own.

"Shin!" She hissed.

He stared at her, with a face caught between flustered and lustful. Then he smiled at her. Her brow furrowed in confusion at his smile.

"You didn't call me Sawada." He breathed, getting closer once again.

His hand trailed to her neck. Then it held her cheek in his hand, leaning in again and he closed his eyes, making that mistake.

_Finally._

She pushed him away from her and stood quickly.

"Just say my name and I'll stop." He mumbled as he regained his composure.

_... I can't call him Sawada for the rest of my life, can I? After al, we've been through I'm still going to address him like a student? He's not a student and he never will be again._

"My name..." He mumbled.

Her eyes snapped open when he said that, she didn't even know they had closed. Her phone started ringing at the same time.

_Thank god... Why did I let him do that to me? What's wrong with me? What about Shinohara-san! SHINOHARA-SAN!_ _I'm just drunk, I'm just totally and completely intoxicated. My mind is clouded, I have bad judgement. Alcohol isn't good for the pure soul!_

She grabbed her phone quickly, recognizing the ringtone. Shin groaned as he recognized it, too. A heavy blush spread out across her face as she stuttered a greeting. It was him, it was that cop, Shinohara.

"Sh-Shinohara-san! Eh? You aren't bothering me. Hai, I know it's late. Oh, I understand... N-No, I'm not busy Friday. R-really?"

"Fuck him." Shin grumbled.

"Friday, Hai. I'll see you then." She said.

She shot a cold glare Shin's way when she closed the phone.

"I can't believe you." He spat and stood up, bracing himself against the wall.

She got up quickly and walked over to him. "Me? I can't believe you! You're just a kid!" She growled.

He grabbed her by the back of the neck and slammed his mouth on hers. His teeth cut the inside of his mouth as he kissed her visciously. She pushed him off. He tasted blood in his mouth. She saw it on his teeth when he opened his mouth to speak.

"Have fun on your date." He growled and walked out angrily.

The phone rang again, minutes after, Kumiko sighed sadly and opened it.

"Mushi Mu-"

"We got your cat." The voice grumbled.

_... Cat?_

"What are you talking about?" She growled into the phone.

The door slid open and Kyo looked at her with a concerned look, then his eyes dropped.

"We have your Lion. He'll pay for shooting one of the Sansetsuko-kumi!"

"You have Shin?" She asked, her hand forming a fist at her side.

"We'll wait for him to sober up. He should see the face of the people going to kill him. He's been causing a little trouble lately." The voice said, smugly.

"It's a complete set-up!" Kumiko yelled into the phone.

"No mistake about it. The Ooedo are powerful, if you'd like to talk about a little give and take... Wait a few hours... We'll call back."

The line went dead before Kumiko could answer. She whipped the phone at the ground and kneeled to pick it up.

"Get the car ready. We need to see Grandpa, and quick."


	2. Chapter 2

**Next chapter up soon :3**

**Review?**

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Shin stumbled down the hallway of the Kuroda house, his mood steadily dropping. He felt abused by the narrow walls he kept bumping into. He also felt angry and betrayed by Kumiko, maybe even a little angst-filled. She did not understand him; she did not see that he was the right one. He wondered if she understood herself. There was no point in dating that cop. A Yakuza heir dating a cop? The thought made Shin gag.

"I may be drunk but she's being stupider than me." He said gruffly.

He also could not understand why she wanted that cop. Everyone had accepted him as the successor, everyone had big plans for him, so why, for even one moment, would she want to be with him? For a moment, he wondered if the reason she would not give him the time of day was exactly because of that. Perhaps, she liked them both but by picking Shinohara, she would be _protecting_ him from turning down that infamous _wrong path_. Reasons like that made him sick. She was practically degrading him as a man, thinking he could not handle it. Moreover, thinking that he was not smart enough to choose his own path. It was not like he had any grand plans, the only thing he wanted was to be with that woman.

He scowled as he walked out of the house, shut the door and stumbled further into the darkness. He felt bad for not telling Kyo he was leaving but he could not stand her. Being in that room with her talking on the phone to that bastard. His mood finally hit rock bottom when he thought about how good and right kissing her had felt and how quick it had been snatched away. The night's air felt good against his hot, flushed face. He turned the corner, walking against the wall of the house. The cold cement helped to cool him off too. His anger was disappearing. It was being replaced with a calm feeling. He felt good but extremely dizzy... It was hard to walk.

The darkness made him feel clueless. He couldn't tell where he was going anymore. His legs were feeling weak... He thought he might even be sweating. His stomach flopped. He gagged. The queasiness in his stomach kept growing. He felt horrible, utterly horrible. The only thing pushing him on down the road was sheer will to get away with her. Subconsciously, Kumiko Yamaguchi had made it to the number one spot on his list of: 'Reasons to Hate Girls'. Whether it was because he loved her and she was a woman, not a girl or because she had let him have a taste of something, then taken it away; he was not sure. Maybe... it was both. They were very contradicting though. Whatever... He was not simple to begin with. All these thoughts made his stomach sicker.

"Hey there, pussycat." Someone called out from the darkness behind him.

The voice was high-pitched and it sounded girly. It made Shin jump out of his skin. There were footsteps behind him, approaching him. His heartbeat sped up. Homosexuals? Or more people looking for a fight? - Either way, that was not good. Not with him feeling so sick, not with his mind totally phased. He was sure he would puke any moment now.

"Aniki of the Red Lion? You look a like a wobbly new-born kitten." A low voice mocked him this time.

Shin stayed close to the wall, putting his back to it. He looked around but he could not see much of anything. Was there one person... or was he seeing doubles? There were two voices, but the high-pitched one could have been the low-pitched one mocking him. No... He was sure there were two of them. They were coming towards him, from each side. A car pulled up behind the two figures. The headlights shut off. Shin's heart was beating faster, his stomach getting weaker.

"Whaddyuh want?" Shin groaned.

The people surrounding him chuckled slightly. Shin knew he was in trouble.

"You've been causin' a little too much ruckus. Burnin' things down, shootin' things down - more accurately people down. We're here to stop you."

Shin could not tell who said it. The world was spinning around him.

"What are you talkin' about?" Shin mumbled. "I didn't do any of those things…"

He attempted to shake his head, but it was more of a pitiful swing. The two walked closer. Shin wished they would just leave... His stomach was beginning to act violently. He did not want to puke all over one of them, or on their shoes. He could only think of the beating he would get if something like that happened.

"Don't lie. We made no mistake." Said one of the black figures. "Now, come with us like a good little kitty."

"Fuck off…" Shin managed to say.

He wanted to walk away but he could not. His legs could not hold him up. One man came close. Shin turned his head the other way as fast as he could.

"UGH!"

It could not be held back anymore. It found its way up his throat, he vomited. Some of it landed on his shoulder and shirt. His mouth burned. He heard grunts of disgust. Everything was out of control as he felt himself being lifted into the air. Next thing he knew, he had been slammed into the trunk of a car. A loud slam came next.

After he had been locked in the trunk, there were muffled sounds of talking... The sounds of someone talking to Kumiko Yamaguchi. So far beyond his reach was the world with her in it. He wanted to scream for help... He really did... He wanted to scream for her help but he was losing all contact with his mind and body. A car revved up and that was the last thing he heard before darkness engulfed him and he was driven off into the night.

Three people filed into the black car. Four people were inside the car, in total. As the car swerved and sped down local roads towards the highway, the streetlights and store sins illuminated their faces. All of them had greasy, slicked back hair and a scar on their right cheek. They all had serious-looking faces but the two in the back were older. The two in the front seats were younger. Riding shotgun was the Sansetsuko-kumi's Young Chief, Mitsubo. Eventually, his serious face broke and he had a small, satisfied smirk on his face. In the back, his advisors who were constantly shooting each other looks.

"Was this a good plan?" Asked one of the older men in the backseat. "Kumichou's probably going to be angry with us 'napping the kid. He and Kuroda are-"

"Kumichou's gonna be fine with it." Mitsubo barked at them. "Don't matter what relations they got goin'. Shootin' one of our kind ain't a light matter and it ain't gunna be treated like one. Got that?"

"Hai..." The man agreed.

The two advisors exchanged a glance again. The young man's face showed agitation. He was crazed and upset over the shooting of one of his men. He sat up in his seat and cleared his throat.

"I'm in control here, so shut yer mouth and do as I say."

The orders were rough and precise. The two men nodded, disdain staining their faces. They looked at each other again after the Mitsubo placed his feet up on the dash of the car.

"Whatta little punk. Who does he think he is?" Mitsubo asked laughing. "'Cause everyone holds him as successor, he thinks he can do what he wants anytime, anywhere?" The guy asked still laughing. "If he thinks it's that easy, Kuroda's more of a senile man than I thought he was from the beginning."

The two men in the backseat shifted uncomfortably in their seats.

"You shouldn't say such things about Kuroda Ryuichiro…" One of the started.

Mitsubo frowned before saying, "I can say what I want about a fool who lets his man get outta line. One of our men got shot straight up in the arm by this punk and you're tellin' me not to call him names?"

The young man twisted around in his seat to stare at the older men. He clenched his fist and growled.

"Calm down! We still have to investigate this." Said one of the older men with a stern look on their face.

"Who needs an investigation. It's this punk, I know it." The young man said confidently.

Mitsubo turned around losing the will to continue this conversation. The two men shook their head as Mitsubo leaned forward and cranked up the radio. As they sped further down the highway, the anger and conversation died. Now, there was nothing left to do but wait for orders and responses.

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Wakamatsu led the way out of the door with Kumiko and Kyo following. They stood outside of the Kuroda Compound with permanent scowls etched onto their faces. A cold wind passed them by as two black cars slid up in progression. The wind didn't affect any of them. Kumiko has slipped on Kyo's leather jacket, and her hair was down covering most of her face and her neck. Kyo and Wakamatsu had dark suits on. All three of them slipped into the car bringing up the rear.

As soon as the door was closed and the cars picked up speed, Kumiko released her beast.

"WHAT THE FUCK!"

Kyo and Wakamatsu jumped out of their skin when she screamed. She brought her fists down on her the top of her legs. Her adrenaline didn't allow her to feel pain.

"This is the second gang accusing him!" She yelled angrily. "The first accused Shin of burning down their warehouse after beating up some punks! Now he's fucking shooting people?" Her knuckles went white as she continued the rant, "Who the fuck is doing this? Who could sink this friggin' low, as to shoot a member of someone's Kumi! What do they have against Shin?"

Kyo lit up a cigarette, nodding repeatedly. She was now breathing hard. In mid-drag, his cigarette was snatched away from him. He looked over at Kumiko. She had taken a long drag. She looked unaware that she was doing it.

She began to rant again, waving the cigarette around dangerously. "Someone's putting on a fake-wig and getting away with it. What's happening to Yakuza's these days? Can't tell a freaking get-up from the real thing? Kudou is in our custody, so it can't be him or any of his friends... I don't think he'd stoop so low as to shoot people anymore..."

Kumiko took a long drag of her cigarette and flicked the ashes off into the ashtray Kyo had been holding. She shook her head and exhaled all the smoke out of her system. Kyo's eyes widened. Wakamatsu turned and choked as he saw Kumiko with a half-gone cigarette.

"Oujo… I didn't know you smoked..."

"Eh? I don't." She mumbled and took another drag. "Oi! What the heck!"

She looked down at the cigarette in her hand and as if realizing what she had been doing all that time started to cough violently. Kyo tapped her back. Eventually, she stopped and handed it back to him. He stared at the half-gone cigarette.

"Ugh!" She screamed.

"Calm down." Wakamatsu soothed gruffly.

He turned away from the two, and looked outside of his window. Kumiko sighed and looked forward. Kyo was still staring at his cigarette. He decided he would finish it as he looked out of his own window. The silence was calming. Once Kumiko had turned her focus to the front of her and everyone else turned away, she started to think again. Her mind running wild. She had so many things she still wanted to say, but she couldn't bring herself to break the silence. She was stifling herself.

It's hard to believe that someone is that bound on breaking the Ooedo name. Why the need? Are we such a threat? It's not like we just go around destroying other Kumi for the sake of it... Is it just to tarnish our name? Or is it that they're really just trying to focus on destroying Shin instead? She shook her head. No, this a battle of Kumi from the looks of it. They're just trying to destroy the successor. I bet they wanted one of the Kumi to lash out and try and kill Shin... Whatever... Those filthy bastards. They should be skinned! I swear, I'll get Shin back and I'll take care of him all through his recovery.

"Oujo." Wakamatsu said breaking her thoughts.

The car stopped and Kumiko nodded knowing that they were there. Wakamatsu stepped out and held the door open for her. Kyo got out of the other side. They all stood in front of a black store door. Kumiko nodded to them and she opened the door. She felt nervous. She'd never actually gone to this place before... What if they were angry that she'd interrupted. Kyo nudged her on though. They began walking through the aisles of a store, then through the back. Then down a really hallway and some stairs. There was a big stone door. She gulped at how ominous it was. Wakamatsu opened the door.

The room behind the door was dimly lit; a secret to society. There was a table, that stretched all the way to the back of the room. Tens of guys in flashy suits sat at the tables. Only a few, including Ryuichiro Kuroda had on a dark suit. They all turned, staring at the intruder with seemingly calm faces, but she could see blood-lust behind their eyes. Kuroda Ryuichiro's face softened when he saw who it was.

"Kumiko?" He asked. "Why are you in this place?"

She gave him a stern look and bowed low to everyone in the room.

"My apologies." She whispered and bowed.

"It's fine. Why are you here?" He asked again with concerned eyes.

"We need your leadership at your point in time. It's about the successor..." She said.

She didn't know if it had to sound that formal, or if it even had to sound that important but she still tried her hardest. Still bowing, she stared at the floor with cold, hard, unblinking eyes and a straight tight mouth. Calling Shin the successor made her shiver. She took a deep breath and held it waiting for the answer.

"Excuse me. As I'm not needed here anymore, I'll leave it to you all." Ryuichiro said before standing and bowing slightly.

"You're excused." The person at the head of the table said.

"Arigatou." Ryuichiro said.

He turned and walked towards his granddaughter. Kumiko let out the breath and straightened up. Her grandfather opened the door for the other three. As soon as they were out and the cold air hit them in the face, Kumiko felt her heart beat slow. She was happy to be out of that seemingly dangerous place, she did not even know what they did or discussed in there.

Kumiko and her grandfather slid into the car in the front, Kyo and Wakamatsu took the back. Kumiko stared at the hands in her lap and began to wring them nervously. She sighed.

"Tell me what the problem is." Her grandfather said calmly.

The car revved up and started to drive back to the compound. The other followed behind it. Kumiko looked behind and then looked at her grandfather. He wasn't looking at her and that made her sad. She really needed comforting words... even comforting eyes would do.

"Another problem came up with a different Kumi. Sansetsuko, they called themselves. Apparently Sawada shot one of their men and they're holding him hostage at the moment. They're supposed to call back. I'm not sure what's happening, grandfather. He's been accused of two serious things now..." Kumiko explained. "Grandpa, what if they really kill him?" She asked and bit her lip. "Then it'll be all my fault for ever letting him get involved with us!"

"Kumiko, this is not your fault. Everyone takes their own paths in life, everything happens for a reason... Kumiko, do you think he's innocent?" Her grandfather asked.

His voice was deep and slow. It was soothing and his words made so much sense. Kumiko nodded to her grandfather.

"Yes, I think so too. We will try everything we can to get Sawada back but you need to be calm about this. Emotions will only get in the way. Rushing head in, will only result in trouble. For now, our main focus will be to get him back. After we do that, we're going to have to keep a close eye on him and try and figure out who is doing what and why. All right?"

Kumiko sighed after taking in the words. Her grandfather was right. Emotions would only get in the way. She needed to be calm and analyse things. Kumiko nodded and closed her eyes, emptying her mind as if she was about to meditate. Ryuichiro smiled as she did this and closed his own eyes as well.

Minutes passed, the silence between Ryuichiro and his granddaughter continued until they arrived at the Kuroda House. Wakamatsu and Kyo stepped out of their car first. Kumiko and Ryuichiro right after. When everyone was nicely assembled in the living room, Ryuichiro gave orders to everyone. Word was quickly spread of the situation throughout the household. Most men were focusing on finding out as much as they could about Sansetsuko and where they liked to hang out. Others were ordered to go out and search. Other people were called, being alerted and asked if they would be backup whenever the time came for it. Other men started to look into Shin's past. A whole entire Yakuza-Kumi working as a detective organization was something Kumiko had never seen done before but she found it awe-inspiring. They were working and finding out so much, so well and so fast.

Eventually, only Kyo, Ryuichiro and Kumiko sat at the living room table. Everyone, had their own emotions going through their head. Kyo and Kumiko both felt at fault. They had let Shin get drunk and leave the compound so early in the morning, right after that big commotion about the fire had come up. They felt stupid for not thinking people might try and get him. Ryuichiro was worried about how Shin was doing and thinking about the future. If Shin managed to get through this and made a full recovery, perhaps, that meant that he really was fit too be successor.

Shin was like a lamb to all of them. At the moment, he'd been sent into a lair full of horrible animals. He was drunk, vulnerable, defenceless, wobbly and young. If he survived against all the horrible things about to come his way, then the lamb would truly be worthy. It was probably the perfect analogy but it was impossible for a lamb to survive against beasts such as those in a lair. They hoped... that he would be okay.

Kumiko was waging a different war within her mind. Not only was she worried he wouldn't survive this, she was worried about his ego, his emotional well-being. She had given into temptation, she had kissed him back. She had built him up and then tore him right down when Shinohara called. She couldn't decide what to feel about that. She was sick of making excuses for herself, so she would not blame all the things that happened on alcohol. She couldn't think about anything else except the kiss. He had kissed her and she had kissed back. They had both liked it but she couldn't remember what she'd even been thinking at the time. Shinohara... She did not know what she felt about the either of them but Shinohara was obviously the right choice for her, she was positive of that. Shin was silly and young and didn't know what he was after. At least... she really wanted to believe all of those things.

"Stop with those stupid faces. It's nobody's fault." The old man said, eager to break the silence. "We're going to try everything to get Shin back and find out the truth. So, don't go being all depressed. We still have hope!" He said loudly.

"Hai!" Kyo and Kumiko said simultaneously.

He's right! Kyo and Kumiko thought to themselves. We can't give up hope just like that! We'll find Shin and those creeps! Yes!

"Kumichou!"

Wakamatsu slammed the door to the side, and bowed as he entered.

"Hai?"

"I have good news and bad news." He said and sat down at the table with the rest of them.

"Bad news first." Ryuichiro said.

Wakamatsu lowered his head slightly before reporting. "Unfortunately, all leads on the Sansetsuko led to dead ends and we have no ideas about the location of the kid." He looked up at Ryuichiro, ready to give the good news.. The Kumichou nodded for him to go on. "The good news is, one of our men thought they saw Shin. So they followed him and found the person holding up a Kumi at gunpoint."

"What?" Kumiko asked.

"It was person with a wig, and a Shirokin uniform. He kept saying he was Shin Sawada, Aniki of the Red Lion" Wakamatsu said, clearing it up.

"A Shirokin uniform but school's over? If they went to Shirokin, I'd know them. You brought him back with you, right?" She asked, standing up.

Wakamatsu nodded, stood and left the room. He walked down the hallway and yelled, "Bring 'im here."

When Wakamatsu returned, he was holding a kid by the elbow. He threw a kid who had long black hair, squinty eyes and a really skinny build. He was unattractive, especially with his hair pulled back into the tight bun. Kumiko winced. Couldn't they get someone better looking? But that wasn't the problem right now.

"What's your name, kid?" Ryuichiro asked.

The kid sat up and looked around frantically. He was breathing hard and he was fidgeting with his hands. There was silence as he looked at the Kumichou. He did not answer. This made Kyo angry.

"You disrespectful lil' brat. You're not going to answer, to Kuroda Ryuichiro? Brat, you better start yappin' or-"

Kyo stopped talking when Kumiko slammed her fists down on the table and got up. She leaned over and grabbed the kid's hair bun, yanking it hard. He shrieked.

"Wotchya gotta against Shin, eh? Someone put you up to it? You better fuckin' answer me, you no good scum!" She snarled in his face, her Yakuza-side coming out to it's full extent.

He bit his lip before saying, "I was paid..."

"Who? Who put you up to it!" She screamed.

"A guy... He said if I did it I'd get into the Kumi."

His voice cracked when he said it. Tears were forming in his eyes from fright and from pain. He stared in front of him, at the woman holding him by his hair. She drew back her fist and went to strike.

"Sit down Kumiko. Now." Ryuichiro ordered after standing up and holding her fist in his hand, preventing her from attacking.

She looked over at her grandfather and her face fell. He was staring at her with a stern, disappointed look that made her facial expression disappear. She let go of his hair, he fell to the floor. She stared at the ground.

"H-hai…" She murmured.

She sat and got comfortable. She was disappointed that she'd done that. And right after her grandpa had said that emotions wouldn't solve anything. Why... Why couldn't she hold herself back, she wondered? The only answer she got from within herself, was Shin. She cared about Shin so much, her emotions would always rule.

The boy groaned and massaged his scalp with a pained expression on his face.

Ryuichiru eyed the boy before saying, "Tell me his name and the Kumi he's in."

"A guy… he was just an acquaintance but he gave me a lot of money and said if I did this, he'd let me into his gang. I'd be immune from all the threats…" The guy said sadly.

"Gimme a rundown of his looks. What's he look like?" Kumiko asked anxiously.

The boy stared at her for a while, frightened that she'd grab his hair. "He's my height… and he has blonde hair with black streaks… Um… he's really muscular and he has lots of tattoos… He has one on his neck but I don't remember what it was… He has a scar on his lip…"

"NAME!" Kumiko yelled his way.

"Katsuyuki… He... He never told me any details... I didn't know... I just wanted protection!"

Kumiko mumbled something incoherent while thinking the guy was disgusting."What's his name?" Ryuichiro asked him.

"Katsuyuki." The kid mumbled. "I'm sorry! No one told me it would be offensive to you!" The kid bowed really low. "I was just scared!" He pleaded.

"Real men don't make excuses for their actions! Stick out your hand!" Kyo growled and grabbed the hidden weapon he always concealed by his chest.

"AAAAAAH!" The kid cried and fainted just like that.

"Eh…" Kumiko said looking at the kid. "God, like he'd ever make it into anyone's Kumi like that." She shook her head.

"Listen, Kumiko. Get some sleep, we'll try and -"

The cell phone rang.

* * *

The car left the highway, taking a shoulder that led to a series of warehouses. The car pulled up in front of one towards the very back. All four men in the car stepped out. The driver went to open the door and turn on the lights within the warehouse. Mitsubo ordered his advisors to take the kid out of the trunk and wake him up by any means necessary, then he left and followed the driver into the warehouse. The two men popped the trunk and lifted the heavy young man out. They walked towards the warehouse with him.

"Put that metal table up against da wall and make him sit up on it. Wake 'im up while you're at it." The Young Chief ordered them as they entered the warehouse.

He pulled out his cellphone, with the intention of keeping his word to call back the Ooedo clan. It had been slightly more than a few hours, but that didn't really matter to him. He dialed the number, and put the phone to his ear. While it rang out, he let his back fall against a cold cement wall behind him.

"Hello. I am Kuroda Ryuichiro." Came a crisp, cool voice through the earpiece of the Young Chief's phone.

"Ah Kumichou. I'm Mitsubo, the Aniki of Sansetsuko." The young chief grinned into the phone and flicked his index finger off of his thumb repeatedly. "I have the kid here."

"Get to the point."

The young chief stopped the movements of his hand and laughed a little bit. "You sound like you're all business so, all right, I'll get to the point. If you want your successor-"

"He isn't our successor." Ryuichiro corrected sternly.

Something crashed in the background of Ryuichiro's side of the telephone. Mitsubo listened carefully. He wasn't sure what he was hearing. Finally he mumbled, "That right?"

"That's right. We want him back."

In the warehouse, Shin had been shoved up onto the metal table and the two older men were slapping him hard. Small groans were reaching Mitsubo's ears. They were annoying him, as well. He got frustrated by the kid's inner refusal to wake up. Mitsubo held the phone with his ear to his shoulder and motioned a slicing motion across his arm. They nodded, showing no hesitation. They both took out pocket knives and pushed up the short-sleeves of Shin's t-shirt. They made two quick incisions on his upper arm.

"Gah!" Shin shouted in protest, his eyes snapping open. He rapidly shook his head and moved away from it. His hands coming up to hold the cuts. He grunted when he touched them, the blood on his fingers made him shake his head again. "Let me go." He groaned, continuing to move back.

Mitsubo smirked a little.

"He shot a member of our crew. I ain't got nothin' against you and your Kumi but shooting someone shouldn't pass by lightly. He needs to pay." Mitsubo murmured, shoving a hand in his pocket. He was a bit uninterested and mad, having to explain himself to the Ooedo Kumichou.

"I agree, shooting someone's members without reason shouldn't pass by lightly, but there's reason to believe he didn't do it."

Mitsubo listened, beginning to flick his finger off his thumb again.

"I didn't shoot anyone!" Shin said raising his voice.

"Shut up, kid. Make him shut up while I'm on the phone!" Mitsubo ordered.

Shin groaned, feeling the inside of his mouth get cut when he was punched in the mouth and cheek hard. He tried to remember what happened, but all he could remember was Kumiko, his rejection and then walking down the street. There was a foul smell, reaching his nose. He looked to his shirt and saw a hardened substance. It smelled disgusting, he gagged and threw up on his lap. He dry-heaved for a moment.

"STOP HURTING HIM! YOU HAVE IT ALL WRONG. SOMEONE IS PAYING PEOPLE TO PRETEND TO BE THAT KID. WE JUST CAUGHT ONE. PLEASE, LET HIM GO RIGHT NOW. WE'LL BRING THE GUY.. I SWEAR, SHIN SAWADA IS INNOCENT..." A girl was screaming frantically in the background

"Bring the kid down here now. I need'a see this with my own damn eyes before I let this kid go wichya." Mistubo said, getting pissed off at the thought he may be mad. He walked over to the driver. "Directions." He said nodding, then walked back to Shin. He heard a drone of the driver talking in the background.

Mitsubo stared at the kid in disgust. Shin was staring at him with a repulsive grimace, and half-lidded eyes. There was blood on his mouth, and blood on his shirt and arms. There was puke in his lap and he was groaning incoherent things as he looked around. Mitsubo stepped away.

"Kid, you got yourself?" He asked, once he'd stepped a good distance away. Shin groaned and Mitsubo asked, "Why do you keep lookin' for trouble?" Shin grumbled something. Mitsubo stepped up and punched him in the mouth again. More blood, came out of Shin's split lip. "Speak up!" Mitsubo yelled.

"I'm not…" Shin said.

Shin shook his head and closed his eyes, the light had begun to hurt and his mouth and arms were stinging annoyingly. His head and heart were pounding, while he felt defenseless. He was still trying to remember everything that happened. Nothing was coming back though. He didn't even know who these people were.

"You playin' dumb with me?" Mitsubo leaned down, getting in his face.

Shin shook his head and held his eyes shut tight. "I didn't…" He moaned pathetically, not looking up.

"Fuck you." Mitsubo said, grinding his teeth together.

He pulled back and swung hard at the cut on Shin's arm. Flashing through Mitsubo's mind, was the look on his friend's face before he died from blood loss. From the gunshot wound that Shin Sawada had inflicted. He would not rest, and he could not believe anything until he had proof. Hitting this kid, would not kill him. He figured, that if he did do it, the kid would confess and if the kid didn't do it, all that he would get is a few bandages and a busted lip.

"Those three guys…" Shin started to mumble, quietly. He strained his voice as hard as he could to continue, not wanting to crack because of the pain he was feeling. "They came at me swinging. I didn't do anything to them before that… and I didn't do anything after that… I just went home to patch up… wouldn't shoot a person either… if there's anything… ugh… anything I learned from hanging with Kuroda… it's that… ugh… you don't… use such a cowardly device… against someone unarmed… Please, believe me… I'm not… that pathetic…" Shin groaned the last word before dropping like a rock, to the metal table and passing out again.

Mitsubo felt his words strike a chord but he dismissed it. He couldn't think about believing a little punk like him. Not when a member of their Kumi was lying in a hospital bed with with a bullet in his thigh.

Half an hour passed, there wasn't a peep out of the redhead on the table. No one talked, they all just waited with sour looks on their faces. Soon, the car's lights flashed to alert everyone of the presence. The intense rumble of a car coming closer had stopped abruptly. Now, sounds of footsteps on pebbles could be heard. A woman smashed through the door quickly, black hair down, leather jacket on and extremely baggy jogging pants. Then behind her, three men. Wakamatsu, Kuroda Ryuichiro himself, and Kyotaro Ooshima followed.

"Shin!" Kumiko yelled as she ran towards the young man. She got nothing but silence in response to her yell. He didn't budge at all. She ran over and turned him over slowly. His face looked horrible. The puke and blood all over his clothes and skin made her feel disgusted and sad at the same time. She couldn't believe this had happened to him. Guilt, horror and love smashed through her like a freight train. "Wakamatsu! Come, help me!" She ordered, tears burning in her eyes at how pitiful the young man looked.

Kyo reached behind him and pulled out a scrawny kid, throwing him in the center of the meeting like meat to sharks. Kyo dug into his back pocket and whipped the wig towards the kid as well. There were steps on gravel but they went unheard to everyone in the room. Kumiko's heart stopped as Wakamatsu helped her pick up Shin and the two men came over, telling them to wait. The conversation started.

"I- I'm sorry…" The kid wailed before bursting into tears in front of all of the men.

"So, what about this kid?" Mitsubo questioned, folding his arms.

Ryuichiro looked at Mitsubo, both their faces covered in shadows making them looking dark and dangerous. It only freaked out the kid more, his wailing made Kumiko's tears finally fall. This whole thing was... bad.

"This kid was pretending to be Sawada Shin and holding some people of another Kumi at gunpoint. I have a feeling someone is trying to turn multiple gangs against us and they're using the boy as a way to do that. He did not shoot your man though, or light the building to burn." Ryuichiro said confident and concise.

Mitsubo looked the boy over and then leaned down to the pick up the wig. He fiddled it with a little bit before throwing it down. He held his silence for a little while. Moments passed then Mitsubo calmly asked, "So, who is it?"

"A guy named Katsuyuki paid this kid. Apparently, he's a Yakuza." Ryuichiro answered.

"Listen, we came to take back Shin because we know he's innocent! I'd like to take him and go. You guys can discuss matters at a different time!" Kumiko declared.

"Don't interrupt." Her grandfather ordered her, from across the warehouse. "It's hard having someone of your group shot, I know but believe me Sawada would not shoot anyone. I want to find this person, that's my first priority but right under it, is the health of Sawada Shin." Ryuichiro stated. "Someone else shot your man, help us find out who."

Mitsubo remembered Shin's final words before passing out and thought about the kid in front of him. Katsuyuki… The Young Chief couldn't say he recognised the name at the point in time but he knew that Kuroda was highly respected in the underworld and he felt that his concern was enough. He would trust for now, but he would keep a close eye on Sawada Shin from now on.

"Take 'im. I hope to be in contact with you. Many people… Now, more than just me and you are going to want to find this guy."

Ryuichiro nodded and gestured for Kyo to come close. He ordered for him to go and get Shin. Kyo followed orders and put Shin over his shoulder, holding back a groan of disgust. The two men, Mitsubo and Kuroda nodded at each other. They both ordered their men to follow them as they headed back to their separate cars.

Kyo opened the door but then he stopped and looked up. Wakamatsu stopped too.

"Tail lights..." Kyo whispered.

"YOUNG CHIEF! GET AWAY FROM THERE!" Was all to be heard before the Kuroda car burst into flames.

A slam and then an explosion illuminated everyone around in the red of more flames as Ooedo's second car and Sansetsuko's both combusted.


	3. Chapter 3

**Short chapter but I wanted a Shinkumi part. :)**

* * *

"Ugh..." Kumiko groaned.

She opened her heavy eyes and stared at the carpet beneath her. She wondered how long she'd been sleeping on the floor for. Reluctantly, she got onto her hands and knees and wiped her mouth. The one arm holding her up, fell as unexpected pain appeared in her lower back. A little too long, she guessed and moved towards the wall. She sat against it, facing Sawada's bed. Her expression turned into a scowl while she continued to rub her back. She felt envious of the redhead who looked oh so comfortable in that bed. She closed her eyes and listened to his heavy breathing. It was sort of calming to hear. It was like a reassurance that he was really asleep and getting the rest he needed.

_But I didn't get the rest I needed._

She sighed, opening her eyes again. Instead of laying on a comfortable mattress, she had resigned herself to sleeping on the horrible uncomfortable floor with nothing but a pillow. _And what a mistake that was!_ She thought angrily.

A soft noise made her eyes open. She watched him as he rolled over. Now his body was facing hers, covered in the comforter, his face hidden. Long strands of red peeked out from over the top. She felt her anger dissipate. It was replaced with happiness. She was glad he was getting the rest he needed. He really did need it.

She wondered if he remembered yesterday's events at all. After said events, her grandfather had ordered her to take care of Shin until the next morning. That including taking Shin to his apartment, cleaning up all the blood, and bandaging him up. He hadn't woken up during all of that. She was especially happy that he hadn't woken up during the process of having his clothes changed.

She knew for a fact, she would never forget yesterday's events for the rest of her life. She recalled the discovery of Shin in the warehouse. With cuts on his arms, bruises and hardened blood by his mouth and on his face. Vomit on his clothes and a pitiful expression on his face. She'd never seen Shin look so vulnerable and helpless. Remembering all of that, sent a chill down her already pained spine. She was sure that all of those events had worked together with Shin's hard floor and created the horrible back pain she was now experiencing.

Sadness washed over her, as she thought about how unpleasant it had been for the Ooedo and the Sansetsuko. Even though they were now working together, the whole incident had caused some bad feelings among the groups. And when all three cars had blown up in front of their eyes, she could see how devestated the Sansetsuko were. It was like they finally realized how serious the situation was to everyone else.

Everyone had so much life ahead of themselves, especially Shin. He was only 19, after all. He had things to do, places to go, people to meet. She smiled wondering what his life would be like in the future to come. Subconsciously she had already placed herself as being a permanent part of Shin Sawada's life. She wanted to remain in his life. There were no thoughts of other women while she thought about his future. She didn't want to be left out of his life, she could not let him leave hers. Coming so close to losing him had made her realize that all of the feelings she'd been feeling for this kid were not teacherly and motherly anymore.

If Kyo and I had been moments sooner... We would've ended up putting Shin into that car and... The fire would've... It would've been all my fault.

She frowned deeper and stood up, walking towards his sleeping figure. She crouched down by his bed, her face by his. She played with a piece of hair that was sticking out from the sheets. She would find who was doing this to him and make them pay. She would not lose the person or people doing all of this to them. It was a fight between Kumi and they were using someone innocent as their weapon. Shin was too precious to her to give up. Just as precious as her Clan. She would see that neither of them were taken from her.

Maybe... they really were after Shin, though? Her heart dropped but just like the last time she thought about that, she shrugged it away. It was still just a fight between Kumi, she reassured herself of this even though part of her grew more worried for Shin than her own Clan.

He moved again, beneath the covers. His eyes became visible. They were still shut lightly, his long eyelashes adorning his cheeks. She heard a soft noise and then his head twisted so that more of his red hair was in her hand. She smiled and tousled his hair some more.

"Cute..." She whispered with a smile. "It's boring waiting for him to wake up though." She whispered softly and stood up, turning around to search the room.

"Who said I was asleep, Yamaguchi?" Came the raspy voice of Shin Sawada from behind her.

She swung around to see him. The blanket was still covering most of his face. One eye was open and staring up at her. She gritted her teeth and her mouth moved to yell at him, but no sound came out.

"You never said you were awake, though!" She exclaimed finally.

He pushed the blanket down a little bit to reveal the rest of his face. She saw a hint of a small smile on his lips. "You never asked." He said and opened both eyes to stare up at her. He watched her huff and walk away to sit against the wall, she had walked over from, again. "Thanks." He said with the kindest voice he could manage but his voice was still raw.

She nodded, trying to convey a 'you're welcome'.

He nodded and smiled. "Kumiko-chan." He whispered and took the comforter off of his body.

The colour red swept into her face, burning her cheeks. Him calling her Kumiko was embarrassing enough, reminding her of the but now, staring at so much of his skin... She turned away quickly. She told herself not look back at him but she could feel him, he was looking at her. He rolled onto his side and quickly sucked in air and then hissed in pain. The side of the arm he was laying on hurt... He couldn't remember anything, try as hard as he might.

"Kumiko..." He whispered and frowned when she didn't look his way. He sat up quickly and tried to make the legs of the shorts longer. "What happened to me?" He asked, standing. He immediately felt light-headed, the world faded from his sight for a few moments. He doubled over and put his hands on the table in front of him. He heard her gasp. He regained his senses and looked at her. "Just got a little light-headed." He said.

She was not reassured, she stood and walked to him. She put a hand between the crook of his neck and shoulder and pushed him towards the bed.

"Lay down and then I'll tell you what happened." She offered gently.

He laid down on his side, ignoring the pain. He reached out for her just as she turned around. He grasped her wrist and yanked her back. He pulled her down with him and his arm went around her waist as she hit the bed. He pulled her back closer to his chest. He heard her gasp in shock and then she wriggled in protest. This movement, agitated his shoulder. Despite the pain he was in a had the nerve to spread across his face like a fire. All because he was holding her so close to him, spooning her like they were lovers. He was glad she was facing the other way as much because as he wanted to see her face, he didn't want her to see his. "I'm laying down. Now tell me what happened." He whispered against her skin.

"Sawada! Let me go!" She said and wriggled some more.

His arm tightened and his other hand came up, he rested himself on his elbow as his hand moved the hair from her neck. He brushed lip on the soft skin where her ear and her jaw joined. He kissed it softly.

"You're hurting me..." He whispered quietly against her neck.

His sensual breath and lips sent chills through her body. Goosebumps pricked her skin.

"Then let me go!" She hissed.

"I'm cold, though." He whined knowing he had won. She did not move against him, or try to get away. He placed light, feathery kisses by her ear, jaw line and neck. He heard her inhale sharply a few times. "I'll stop... I promise, Kumiko. Now, tell me what happened." He whispered, pulling his mouth reluctantly against her skin. He placed his head behind hers and relished in the scent of her long hair and tightened his arm around her waist.

Minutes passed before she finally relaxed. He smiled and let his grip loosen a bit. She started nervously, but eventually her voice smoothed out and she told him everything that had happened. Every once in a while he would make small sounds to tell her he understood what she was saying. He was just happy that he was alive and he could enjoy holding her like this.

"I can't believe I let you leave like that... If anything would've happened to you, it would've been all my-"

Her voice stopped when he let go of her waist and moved away from her. She turned her head to see what was wrong and then his hand was on her hip and he was turning her to face him. She let herself be flipped over. He moved closer to close most of the space. Immediately he put his hand around her waist, again. He leaned in close to her face. He winced in pain, he wondered if his shoulder had opened up but the thought was gone as quickly as it came. He found himself lost in her eyes. His face got close enough, until theirs noses touched. There was a little more than an inch between his mouth and hers and it was driving her crazy. She flushed slightly. His hand came and touched her hot cheek, making it blaze a deeper red. He watched her expressions as he caressed her cheek. He moved his face to the side. With the noses moved, his face moved in closer to hers. He brushed his lips against hers and cupped her cheek. She closed her eyes, loving how their breath was mingling and put her mouth on his.

"It wouldn't have been your fault." He whispered, pulling away from the kiss.

She opened her eyes quickly. "Eh? Wh- Sawada, yes it would." She said, lifting her head from the pillow she had been sharing with him.

He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her body close to his own. For a moment all he could think about was how annoying the fabric of her thick shirt was against his bare skin. It was such a nuisance. He wished he could be torturing her with the skin contact. Even her jeans, pissed him off.

"It would've been my fault." He whispered softly and closed his eyes.

She stared at him thinking that he looked quite angelic... Even with the bruise on the corner of his mouth and a busted lip. She instantly remembered the blood that had accompanied them. Still, he looked amazing. His messy red hair framing his face, looking fluffy and soft. Eyes closed, lips parted, looking full and tempting. Being so close to him, was truly mesmerizing.

"I wasn't mature enough to control my actions that night. I know who your heart belongs to but I couldn't help myself and got angry. I left when I knew I'd be in danger but I'm glad you saved me, took care of me. Glad I can hold you." He frowned and looked into her eyes. "I love you."

She finally released her breath. Her heart was beating hard in her chest and her ears. She could hear the thumping of her heart in the silence that followed. She felt her head behind turned by his hand. She let him see how red her face had gotten. She stared up at him with far-off eyes, stuck in fantasy. She could only see him as perfection. His words, voice, body and this position all contributed to the way she felt. A feeling she'd never even felt before was surging through her veins. She was mesmerized and dramatized at the same time.

"Kumiko..." He breathed, happy to see her expression like this.

He didn't feel the need to restrain it anymore. His soft lips caught hers in a delightfully tender kiss. Now, that she was sober, the full impact hit her hard. He deepened the kiss a bit and then he stopped, letting his lips linger on hers for a bit longer. He pulled away from her lips. A sweet feeling rushed through his body as he saw her face.

"Do you love me?" He asked her. "... Kumiko... Tell me," He paused for a really long time, staring at her. He sighed and searched for her hand, he put his fingers between hers and held her hand. "Do you love me?" He asked louder, firmer squeezing her hand.

"I -" She stopped and bit her lip.

He leaned on his elbow and stared down at her with curious eyes. She gasped and said his name as she stared at where his bandages were on his upper arm. He gulped as he saw the blood that was seeping through. He had opened up the cut. He frowned. She moved away from him.

"We need to put new bandages on!" She said and pulled out of his arms, running around the place.

He sighed unhappily, his mood now dissolving.

How disappointing... He thought as he cursed himself for not being more careful about the wound. He watched her search aimlessly and then look up at him for answers. He sighed and finally said, "Bottom drawer of my desk..."

She flew over to it and rummaged around until she found a fist aid kit. She smiled and sat at the foot of his bed, placing the kit beside her. She motioned for him to get into a better position. He sighed and complied, sitting on the edge of the bed. The bloody arm facing her. She removed the bloody bandages and wiped away the blood quickly. She quickly pulled off her shirt, making him gasp and blush but then he noticed she had on a tanktop beneath it. She glared at him and he smirked a bit more. She wrapped the shirt around tightly. He held his hand to the wound, applying pressure. She grabbed new bandages and antibiotic cream from the kit and then sat in front beside him.

"I'm fine." He grumbled in response to all the concerned looks she was giving his face and arm. "Yes, I am." He said when she shook her head.

"You are not okay, Shin! You're bleeding and it's because of -" She shut up when she recieved a dirty look.

"Yeah, because of you. To show me your appreciation you have to go on a date with me." He smiled a little and nodded again as her face went pale and she stared at him. "It looks like you think I'm going to take you a dog-fight instead of dinner. Don't worry, I'll blow you out of the water." He said with a gentle smile.


	4. Chapter 4

**I apologize that the next chapter won't be up for a while... :(**

* * *

"What do you mean by _that_?" Kumiko asked with a frown.

The redhead in front of her stared at her with the same impassive look and repeated himself. "Go out with him Friday night and me Saturday night." Shin frowned at her when she stared blankly. "Go on both dates and we'll see which one you liked better. I already know I'm going to win so what's the big deal?"

"When did it become a competition?" She asked with a frown of disapproval.

He rolled his eyes. It had been a competition since the day she uttered his name.

"Then say no to one of us. If you pick me you can spare him the loss." He smirked, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"You're ridiculously cocky." She muttered, crossing her arms tighter over her chest and deepening her frown.

He smiled and said nothing before turning to look out into the distance. She stared at him suddenly thinking that he looked very serene. She calmed and turned to look out over the bridge and down at the water below.

"Cocky." He repeated, scoffing. "Really? Is Shinohara ridiculous too?" Out of the corner of his eye he saw her look over at him. "He seemed to like his _own_ proposal. He said I'd never win."

Her mouth dropped. Shinohara had agreed and arranged this? Shin's face turned to hers just as a breeze blew messing up her hair but not his. He stared at the piece of hair that flew and landed by her lips. His hand snaked out quickly, moving the piece of hair away and gently tucking it behind her ear. She flushed and he smiled.

"Saturday at 5." He said, running his hand through his hair.

She put her hands on her hips as she watched him saunter off the bridge with a smile. His hands had magically ended up in his pockets again and she sighed, remembering that he was still in danger. She frowned as another piece of hair flew by her mouth. She ignored it, turning the other way and starting towards her neighbourhood. She began to wonder how could she go out with Shinohara and then Shin the next night?

That just felt so wrong to her but she admitted to herself that she couldn't reject either of them. She couldn't reject Shinohara just when her unrequited love was about to become reciprocated. He was realizing her potential. He was willing to give her a try even with a Yakuza family under her belt and a police job under his. He was going to try things out with her and he was such an amazing person. She couldn't give the chance to go out with him up. She wouldn't let herself.

Then there was Shin. She had to admit, he was pretty amazing. He was intellectual, sophisticated when he wanted to be, supportive and he'd loved her for a very long time. He'd managed to wheedle her into a date and he'd even gained respect and a future 'place' in her family. He'd admitted he'd loved her and he'd pushed her on when no one else had. He'd helped her and she owed him a lot. A date was the least she could do with helping to keep her secret, a place in school and with his friends and rushing to save her a few times. Nope, she couldn't reject him either. She was starting to like him, maybe even to...

"Kumiko-chan!"

She turned around another blast of wind hitting her in the face as Shinohara ran up to her with a smiling face. She flushed and tensed as he put his arm around her waist. Her senses began to jumble up when he leaned down quickly, closing his eyes and placing his lips over hers. There was a horrible lump in her throat as he straightened, scooped her hand up into his and began to walk on like nothing had happened. Did that really just happen? Did he just kiss her... Were they... holding hands.

"Where were you heading?" He asked, wanting to break the silence.

The communication between them remained nonexistent. She was still shocked and now she was becoming a little upset with herself. She didn't know what emotion she was feeling at the moment. The lump in her throat had sunk down and became unnaturally large in her stomach. She twisted her mouth unhappily. Why hadn't that been as amazing as it should've been? It was Shinohara... The tall, dark and amazing Shinohara that everyone, including her, had panted over for so long. Yet, she couldn't deny that there had been no spark when he'd kissed her. She touched her lips wondering if it was just because it was brief and she hadn't expected it at all?

"Were you going home?" He asked, looking to the side and down at her. He watched her nod, still touching her lips. He smiled, happy she liked it. "I'll walk you home and I'll call you tomorrow." He said and watched her nod again.

It would be pleasant to say the walk home was silent but it wasn't. The noise of all her thoughts going through her head, mixed with the music and the screaming of nearby stores and their customers gave her a headache. Holding his hand made the thing in her stomach even heavier and the kiss goodbye made her flush not with embarrassment but with anger at herself. Why wasn't it as good as it should be? Why couldn't she just enjoy it? It was all because of him, wasn't it? Him. That stupid redhaired son-of-a...

"Kumiko! Welcome home!"

She faked a smile and let herself be ushered in by Kyo.

* * *

Dangerous men in bright suits sat around a table and shoved papers towards one another. They grumbled at each other, sometimes in agreement and other times not. The discussion over the papers, and the pictures moved into a dead end and then the sounds halted. Had they found the answer or was this one of the many leads that had led to nothing? The discussion stopped and some of the group disbanded, off to follow leads and get drinks.

A tall man, with grey hair and dark eyes entered the room. Many men bowed slightly, uttering his title with respect. The man walked towards the head of the table and sat down, grabbing a picture from the middle of the table. He held it up, pointing a finger to it. Many men nodded.

"That's Katsuyuki. He's been running a underground drug operation. He sold drugs to a few kids, made them promise to play as the Young Master and in turn, promised them a part in his business."

"Why?"

"We're not sure. We're going to talk to him and investigate his schedule. It seems he was gambling for a very long time but it suddenly stopped before the Young Master's incidents."

"I see." The old man asked as he eyed the men around the table.

"We've got men from Kuroda and Sansetsuko going to check him out. We intend to find out where he was gambling. After that, whatever happens, happens."

The old man nodded. "That young man cannot die in this process, do you hear me? I've decided... that he will indeed be my successor."

There was applause all around and then silence as the old man coughed and stood.

"Medicine." He explained and excused himself.

Awkward glances passed around the room and the air of mystery was left as the sliding door closed and the infamous Kuroda Ryuichiro left the room.

* * *

Everything was perfect.

The music contributed to the perfect mood that had been set. The candlelight that flickered across their faces and the wine that made warmth rise in both of their stomachs allowed them to share a close moment of intimacy. Shinohara stared at Kumiko, his eyes warm, seeming to feel the romance. When she opened and closed her eyes, the candlelight made the shadows of her eyelashes elongated and the shimmer around her eyes glitter. He was absolutely dumbfounded. He had finished his meal but she hadn't finished hers. She sat there, toying with her food, lookig shy and elegant. He smiled at her timidness as she brought a bite up to her mouth.

She looked up at him when she had finished the food in her mouth. She forced a smile and began to wonder what she should say. She was astonished at how romantic and amazing this night had been. Shinohara had treated her like a princess and she had loved it. She had loved the pampering and all the gourmet food she'd tried but acting so prim and proper as to not disappoint him was getting a little hard. She felt herself begin to fidget and she focused on finishing the food on her plate. She blinked, holding her eyes closed a little longer than usual as she tried to savour food that was tasting dull and this beautiful night that was making tense.

"Are you all right, Kumiko?" He asked, sensing a little of her discomfort.

She nodded. "I'm just a little shy and overwhelmed." She murmured, trying to sound gentle.

"I get it. I had a nice time tonight." He said softly, sipping his wine again.

Again, she nodded and took another bite of food. She was forcing herself to eat it now and eat it in a proper way. She had no appetite and the only thing that had been on her mind was how amazing and how grateful she should be for this chance and how much she was screwing up. She wondered what the date with Shin would be like... It could be anything... She smiled, knowing he was a little less than predictable. She knew whatever she predicted, she'd probably be wrong. He'd blow her out of the water. She smiled some more.

Warmth entered his heart as he watched her smile. Hatred entered Shin's as he watched them looking so cozy. He held back a growl. He didn't want her to be enjoying it this much. Maybe, he'd have to change his plans up. Maybe, she liked to be dined like this. He should make her feel like a woman, yeah. He frowned, he'd thought his idea would work so well but apparently, for once, he was wrong. What had made her so damn happy anyways? She'd been looking so discontented with the night and now she was smiling like a fool. He frowned and stood up.

"Bullshit." He mumbled.

Kumiko's eyes flicked up, looking towards the door of the restaurant. The door was silently closing, a figure she hadn't been able to see left. Her eyes switched back to Shinohara who was looking at her with love and happiness. She flushed. This was special, she should be appreciating this, not thinking of tomorrow night with Shin.

She tried to keep her genuine smile but it faded in the car ride home. She shifted in her seat, wondering what Shin was doing and how he was getting ready. She smiled as she stared out of the window.

Her phone began to rang. She frowned and muttered an apology before answering her phone.

"What is it, Kyo? That's fu-" She furrowed her brow remembering Shinohara was next to her. "Freaking ridiculous." She finished. "Did we get Katsuyuki? What'd he say?" Her mouth dropped as she listened to the rest of the story.

The car stopped and she nodded, opening the car door, waving goodbye and still listening intently to the phone. Shinohara blinked.

"Brutal..." He whispered, feeling a little rejected.

"I see... I'm home, let's talk inside about this girl." She murmured, closing her phone and forgetting all about Shinohara and thinking all about Shin. "I'm not going to be jealous!" She screamed into the phone. "I swear to you, I'm not going to be jealous of some wimpy little girl!"

"Good Kumiko. Jealousy is a sin. There's something about this girl you should know. Come with me." A voice said from behind, and her grandfather walked out from behind. She nodded and said a goodbye before following her grandfather to a dark car and sliding in. She wondered if this was going to be a dangerous visit somewhere... She was in heels and a red dress... She frowned, not understanding anything at all.


	5. Chapter 5

**Oh my goodness, a super long chapter, what? :O**

**To all the people who have put this story on their alert list, I'm sorry. :(**

**I don't know if I'll be putting up the next chapter, actually. I don't know what I want to happen. I'll try, though. :)**

**

* * *

**

Decorated by shadows and dressed in normal attire, Kumiko's grandfather sat in the backseat of the dark car, looking stern instead of kind. There was the dark and within it was the glitter of her dress once in a while. There was silence and it was only broken by the seldom sound of a car speeding by in the opposite direction. They travelled into darkness, the shadows building up along with the anticipation in her gut. She wanted to hear it and know everything. She wanted to know who was doing this to one of the people she cared most about. She wanted to go and murder them with all of her pent up frustration but that wouldn't happen until her grandfather decided to talk. The silence lasted for a few minutes, but it was something close to a lengthened forever.

Kumiko sucked in a long breath that filled her lungs to their deepest potential and then she broke the silence. "What do you know, grandfather?" There was a long uninterrupted silence that followed and the anticipation, almost obligingly let worry mingle in with it. She bit her lip, staring at her grandfather and then the driver but neither said a thing. She opened her mouth, but she was finally given an answer, that wasn't an answer.

"To be jealous is a sign that you have no confidence in yourself. Have I raised you that way, Kumiko?" He asked, looking at her, his eyebrows low and his eyes dark.

Kumiko sighed and looked away at her lap. To bring up a think like jealousy, only meant something bad. This girl was involved with him and she didn't know anything about her. She didn't know whether she was young, old, strong, weak, slender, muscular, adorable, or ugly. It was a mystery to her. So the statement about jealousy, and so was that statement about jealousy. Was it supposed to be a warning?

"What's her name?" Kumiko asked.

Her grandfather nodded, understanding that his granddaughter just wanted to know about the dangers surrounding Shin. "Morioka, Azumi." He answered.

"Morioka Azumi?" Kumiko asked, repeating her name and getting used to it. "What about her?" Kumiko responded, turning her head to face the old man beside her.

"She is the daughter of a man who runs a big successful corporation dealing in computers and such." He answered.

Kumiko nodded but she didn't understand. What was so special about her? What did she have against the Ooedo and Shin? "Explain." Kumiko mumbled.

"The investigation on Katsuyuki revealed that he was a heavy gambler. When we asked him about it, he told us that he used to gamble with Azumi's father. Now, was busted for gambling and is in jail but the suspiscious part was Azumi had been busted with him. She isn't in jail and eventually Katsuyuki said that he was hired by her."

"Why would she do that?"

"We do not know." Her grandfather said this in a low, quiet, tone.

Kumiko nodded. "What are we going to do?"

Her grandfather did not answer, he only turned from her and kept his gaze fixated at the darkness he could not reach. He used to have the hopes this could blow over, now they were not hopes, they were wishes. A wish that could not come true because this was more than just Shin being framed because he was involved with a Yakuza kumi. It was someone trying to ruin his life and with his, would go his granddaughters because this was no ordinary girl doing this. He wished that he had never found out and he hoped that Kumiko would never have to. Perhaps, Shin would be smart and fix it all quickly. Leaving his granddaughter out of this mess, was all he wanted. Womanly pain wasn't suitable for someone like her.

"Do I have a reason to be jealous of her, grandfather?"

"We don't know everything about her." He said before adding, "Soon though, we'd like to have a confrontational meeting with her." He saw his granddaughter nod and something inside of him hurt. The situation was enough to make him frown and enough to him wish that the relationship between his daughter and Shin had not advanced so quickly. He was an important part in their lives, he knew, and he could cause happiness but he could also cause sadness. He hoped, whatever destruction the truth would cause would lead to a better rebirth of things that were never whole.

"Well, if she knows Shin, I'll try and find out about her." Kumiko said and looked at her grandfather.

He remained motionless, not wanting to hear. There was a long sigh from the young woman beside him and tried to block tomorrow's ending from his mind. He knew, what she didn't and he knew, what Shin hadn't. He didn't see his granddaughter picking up on the weird vibrations he was giving her, or the raised eyebrow she was giving him. She wondered what was up with the way his words had lingered after the sentences were supposed to stop.

"Is there something I should know?" She asked him.

"It's not my place to tell you."

* * *

Shin dialed the number, familiar and unused. He waited for the five rings to pass and frowned. He knew what was coming before the mechanical voice had sounded and the beep had followed. His frustrations rose. "We need to talk." Shin said to the answering machine, sharp and simple.

He hung up and walked over to his desk, grabbing a stray pen that lay on the table. He added the last point-form note to his list and read it over, making sure that everything had been laid out perfectly. For this date, he would make sure that nothing would go wrong. She would not ruin his once in a lifetime chance. He wouldn't let such a shallow person come between him and the only woman, who though out of his league, could interest him in such a way. And though his frustrations were building and a part of him wished for her to ignore the message and not call back, he needed to 'talk' to her. He wanted to hear her reasons for waltzing back into his life and proceeding to mess things up even more than they already were.

Things were messed up. His friendships and his love life were being ruined along with just the chance of surviving. He was repeatedly being called, being alerted of the crimes he did not commit. He had been shoved into a trunk, cut up and punched because people were dressing up as him and walking around, waving guns in the air without a care. He wouldn't be surprised if whoever was doing this did something so outrageous he ended up dead within the next week. He couldn't help but wonder what the next ridiculous thing, this identical twin would end up doing. Theft? Molestation? Actual murder?

He had found a reason to go to school and the will to stand up for his friends that consisted of a lot more than 'being cool'. He wanted to impress a woman who was on a whole different level and he would try his best. He'd waited so patiently, for the day where he could attempt to court her and now that it was here, she was ruining it for him. She was ruining it by messing up a relationship with one of his best friends. Friends had been rare then and his friendships were strong now but she was coming in a messing it all up. He could recall her and the day before, with disgust.

He had woken up yesterday to an empty house, an empty stomach and the ringing of his phone. Kyo was on the other end of the line, there to inform him, he'd been framed for making and utilizing counterfeit money... In a drug deal, no less. Kyo had mentioned that his beloved Oujo was now confused as to what date to go on. Instead of listening to the rest of what Kyo had to say concerning his framing and this guy Katusyuki, he called the cop and asked for a way to solve the problem. Shinohara then proposed a deal. A deal that went as follows: Whoever could win Kumiko over with a date, would get her and the loser would have to back off, for good. Unless, of course, Kumiko decided to go to them.

By the end of the phone call, incessant hunger was racking at him. He had went out to search for something tasty and at least slightly aesthetically appeasing. He'd searched around but unfortunately, the only thing he'd found was that woman wandering around on her own, staring at a package of tentacles. He'd made his way over and told her of the deal then left her on the bridge, hopefully thinking about Saturday and not Friday. His departure apparently wasn't quick enough for the heaven's liking because as he turned around, his eyes had landed right on the slow motion movie of that disgusting cop appearing. Shinohara kissed her and slipped his hand within hers. They had walked off, as if nothing had happened and the only thing Shin could feel, was anger and foolishness.

He'd made his way to Kuma's a little later. The one time he decided to mooch of someone, was the one time he lost his appetite right away. Approaching the house, there was a loud yell, attracting his attention and the door had opened to reveal Noda and that disgusting excuse for a human. Smeared lipstick had come into view along with an erection rising through thin jogging pants and he was sure that he'd seen Noda's tongue disappear so far into her mouth it was practically unthinkable.

Leaving in a fit of anger, he returned to his childhood home, stolen a long, sleek, black car and sped off to follow Shinohara's. When watching how the date was going between his rival and the woman, he was sure he would win over, he had felt his heart soar and then drop moments later. She had been staring at her food and looking so uninterested in him but in a split second she had gone into a state of happiness. A smiley, wondrous-kind of happiness that consisted of eyes that were locked onto 'dreamy' and spewed out love.

He shook his head, and closed his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh. Why was everything going so wrong when it was supposed to be getting easy? He'd graduated school with honours, gotten more than enough invitations to Universities and gotten a date with the seemingly untouchable. Then everything was suddenly creeping back into his life. She had crept back into his life but what for what purpose? To get back at him for 'ratting' on her? What a shallow, disgusting piece of trash and she was fooling around with one of his friend's. Noda. That sickly weak bastard.

He found himself loosening up shortly after, thinking about Kumiko and they day he had planned. A genuine smile graced his face and he ran his hands through his newly died hair.

A couple hours later, Shin opened his eyes and looked towards the clock on his wall. He blinked, trying to make it out through still-bleary vision. All he could make out was the hour hand and it was deathly close to the number five. He gulped and shot up. As he dug throughout his closet, trying to find anything to make him look good, he could hear something in the background. Something repetitive but he couldn't pinpoint it and he ignored it.

He settled on dark boxers and a dark pair of jeans, the blue so dark on both items they could pass for black. He grabbed the first black tee-shirt he could find and after sliding it on grabbed the next thing available. A shirt that Kuma's mom had bought for him when he had just died his hair red, it was silky and crimson, probably one of the best pieces of clothing in his closet. He tried to smile, while fiddling with his hair, now tousled and messy. He glanced at the clock, and decided to leave his hair alone. After all, wasn't it always tousled and messy? He grabbed his wallet and left, slamming the door behind him and ignoring the sound he finally recognized as beeping. The beeping of his answering machine but how important could it be?

He grunted as he walked towards the ground floor, knowing he couldn't look as professional and handsome as Shinohara. He knew he looked good but he wondered if that was only a teenager's view. Would she like this, his look, his plans for tonight? He desperately hoped that nothing he had planned would have to be left out because everything on the schedule was there for a reason. This whole night was based around attempting to boost every emotion in her to the fullest. Hopefully, if he overwhelmed her like that, she would realize that he was all she needed.

He grinned as he walked off the flight of stairs leading from the ground floor to the sidewalk. His eyes flashed straight to the long, sleek, black car that he'd borrowed from his father a little earlier that day. He grabbed the keys that he'd attatched to his wallet and slid into the car, appreciating the fine leather seats. He revved the engine, and sped off, not wanting to be late picking her up.

But, he was.

Shin rolled his eyes at the tap on the window. He lazily reached a finger towards the button and let the machine do the work. As soon as the window disappeared into the car door, a large, muscular figure placed itself through the window, a grin covering it's menacing face. He tilted his head, examining Shin's ride. "You're a minute late, Young Master." Kyo said with a wink. "Very nice." He murmured, touching the seats with appreciation. He smiled at Shin once more.

He shrugged it off, trying to play it cool. "Where is she?" He asked.

Kyo only shrugged before winking, waving and removing himself from the car door and walking away.

Shin raised an eyebrow. What an amazing answer, the thought came out a lot more sardonic than he'd expected. He wanted an answer to his question but he obviously wasn't going to get one. Shin looked away, at the watch on his wrist wondering what the whole 'wink' from Kyo was about. He wondered if she would be mad with him for being a minute late.

When he looked back towards the house, there was something similar to goddess coming closer to his car. She put him in such a strong state of awe, he didn't get out and open the door for her like he had planned. Instead, the door opened and Kumiko slid in. A long, slender leg first and then her body, dressed in a black number that was tight around the torso and flowed around knees. There were no straps as far as he could see but the long, shiny hair that was done up in a loose curls made it impossible to tell. The door closed behind her and she looked up at him. This snapped him out of his daze but the glaze in his eyes was still apparent.

He coughed and looked away, fixing his eyes on the road. "Let's go." He murmured with a small smile and as she nodded her recognition he took off, tearing up the street in a way that should've been immature but only radiated power to her.

Her heart was pounding, hard. It was all a combination of anger and frustration, anticipation, shock and maybe a tiny bit of lust. She was mad at herself for thinking that there was something he was hiding. Had he lied about something to her? She was frustrated because of all the questions that ran through her head from the time she'd stepped out of the car she was in with her grandfather, till now. She was shocked that even while so frustrated, she'd spent more time dolling up for Shin than she had for Shinohara. It had been a teacher/student relationship and nothing more, at least, they'd kept it that way, physically. And it wasn't as if he lied all through the year about liking her, he'd just withheld the information in a mature manner. And somehow, all of that tension had led up to this strange, deranged way of courting her through a battle. A battle between him and a man. Shinohara was a man, the personification of tall, dark and handsome. And it should've been Shinohara who ignited all the feelings of attraction in her but seeing Shin dressed up in crimson red around his neck and dark clothes, his eyes smothering her with intense attraction, Shin was the one who made her fire up.

"You look good." He said, breaking her out of her thoughts. She looked over, blushing and he was just staring out at the road. "Amazing." He added. She opened her mouth to say thanks, but she couldn't. She just nodded instead when he looked over at her. "We'll have to skip something I had planned." He mumbled, his tone full of disappointment. For now, he added to his thought with a little inward smile.

She nodded, again and felt him look over at her. "What did you have planned?" She asked, sounding as distant and uninterested as she could allow herself to.

He smirked at her. "It doesn't matter." He turned his vision back to the road, instead of the woman beside him. She looked so tempting and yet so distant. He tightened his hands on the steering wheel, wondering if he'd already lost and if he had a chance to turn this back around after seeing that look on her face at the restaurant the other night.

The silence drove her crazy. They got farther and farther into a land of nowhere, populated by nothing but the asphalt road, it's white lines, and blossoming trees along the side of the road. She stared out her window, trying to focus on the scenic route instead of the young man sitting beside her. A man in uniform versus a boy who used to wear a school uniform? How had managed to captivate her? Was it mystery at his impassive, introverted nature or his will to stand up for his friends, maybe it was the help he had given her through her hard year at a school full of delirious punks. She loved them all and she was beginning to think she could love him that way.

"You're quiet. Is something wrong?" Shin asked, suddenly, looking over at her. She shrugged. "Bullshit." He said, rolling his eyes. "If you're upset because I'm taking you on a date that's hours away and you think it won't compare to his, start changing your mind." She shot him a glare and he shot one back. "Well, if that's not it, then what's wrong with you?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"For a start, I'm clueless as to where we're going or what we're going to do."

"It's a surprise. Don't be frustrated, just relax and enjoy the mystery."

"I don't like surprises."

"Start." He ordered, sounding grumpy. He listened to the silence, waiting for her to say something else but it never came. "What else is upsetting you?"

She grunted and looked away before asking what he meant.

"You said that it was just a start, so tell me what else is bothering you."

She sighed, recalling the way her grandfather had ended the conversation regarding Azumi. She knew that she'd have to worm everything out of Shin. She wasn't afraid of the answers she would get because she was sure there was nothing too devastating. Probably just a little unrequited love, maybe their families had conflicts.

"The guy who was framing you said that he was hired by someone else." She mumbled, meeting his curious eyes. "What does the name Morioka Azumi mean to you?" She asked and saw his face pale, his hands let go of the wheel slightly and lips part. "Do you think there's anything that could lead to her doing something like this?" She stared at him, curious about the horrified face he was making.

Then the car began to swerve and her stomach lurched forward.

"You idiot!" She screamed, grabbing the wheel.

They fought for control until he was fully awake from his daze. Anger slowly pouring into him, running through his veins along with hot embarrassment and curiousity as to just how much she knew.

"Well, Shin?" She asked. "Is there something that happened between you guys that could lead to her framing you for all of these-"

"This is _our_ date, I don't want to bring unnecessary subjects up, okay?" He asked, taking a sharp turn.

She gasped as the car bumped viscously off of the road and onto a dirt trail. She opened her mouth, ready to say something, to yell at him or scream at him but she had her breath taken away as they got to the end of the dirt path. In front of them, was an extremely large excess of water, perhaps, they had reached the sea The sun was just about to set, the colours highlighting the clouds in it's rays of colourful beauty. There was nothing else besides the sunset to her. She didn't even see the humungous villa that lay completely hidden with the trees just ahead, slowly being covered in shadows.

He smiled and stepped out of the car before swinging open her door and pulling her out towards him. He wrapped his fingers in with hers and watched her cheeks being painted red by the heat of embarrassment and the sun's final light. In a very womanly way, she found herself being majestically swept into feelings induced by the beauty of the sunset, sparkling on the water, the heat of summer and the warmth of his hand and his body on her skin. There were no words, even when the sun had gone down. She stood there with her hand in his until he turned her head and swiftly put his mouth on hers. It was soft and it was quick but it left her speechless.

"Let's go get something to eat." He whispered while she couldn't respond. He then proceeded to drag her along with him, past clusters of trees and towards the villa she never even saw coming. He was glad that he knew his way around this place or else, he would've been lost. He was glad that he'd made all the preparations or else, there would've been no food and no supple-tasting wine for them, when he led them onto a wooden deck and towards a two-seater table. He smiled at the way she blushed when he poured the wine for the both of them. The lanterns that hung to the side of them, allowed one side of the young man's face to glow and the other to be covered in a light shadow.

"It wasn't an unnecessary subject." She told him.

He shook his head. "I want to enjoy this."

"I think you'll be able to enjoy your whole life if we get this all cleared up."

Shin rolled his eyes. "I think I understand what's happening so I can finish it up, just leave it to me." He stared at her and then felt compelled to explain. "Azumi and I had a disagreement and in the end her dad's company was busted for illegal gambling."

"Gambling?" She asked. "How did it slip?"

Shin shrugged. "I told my father."

"That's not like you..." She observed. "Why did you tell him?" She asked, picking up her chopsticks and taking a bite. "Are you going to tell me?" She asked before taking a sip of wine and staring at him. Once again, he shrugged.

"I gave you an answer to the main question, so let's top talking about her." He mumbled, feeling parts of him sink.

"I need to know everything I can about this girl so that we can make this all stop." Kumiko said, trying to reason with him.

"I told you I can handle it." He dismissed but with her eyes on him, unwilling to move he sighed and continued. "She wants to ruin my life the way I ruined hers. When my father closer her company down and he went to jail, she got angry and I guess this is the way she handles it."

"You _ruined_ her life?" Kumiko asked.

"Her father went to jail and she went down with him."

Kumiko raised an eyebrow before saying, "She isn't in jail, though."

"I'll keep talking to my father long enough to get it cleared up."

Kumiko frowned and thought it over. Shin had told his father about the gambling because he'd gotten mad at her. Her father had then proceeded to shut the place down and in turn, she got mad because her life would go down the drain with it. Now, she was trying to ruin Shin's life. It was still weird, though. It wasn't like Shin at all to rat on anything or anyone, no matter what and especially to his father.

"What did she say to you that made you tell your father?"

Shin finished his bite and then stared at her for a long while as if debating whether or not to tell her. "Something stupid. It's not important." Shin said dismissively.

"Of course it is!" She exclaimed. Every part of this was information to get her to stop.

"It's not your business." He said sternly.

Kumiko gaped at him, a little shocked by the seriousness of his voice but she backed off and stayed silent. She couldn't help herself. She kept on thinking about what could have went on between them to make him so angry, he'd rat on her to his father. And why his father of all people? Was it because he was a police man with the authority to close that place down with a word or was it deeper than that?

For the rest of the meal, she held her breath. He watched her slug back the wine and he finished his before grabbing her hand and leading her inside. She wanted to ask him so badly, the thing that was lingering in her mind and she was fearing it but she needed to ask about it and find out. It could help with the investigation...

"Don't worry about me. I'll make her stop so please, back off this-"

Kumiko frowned and pushed him so hard he fell on his ass. "Don't tell me to back off when you were thrown in a trunk and beaten. How can you tell me to back off when I care about what happens to you, Shin? I'll dig as deep as I need to because I need to find out about you two and what went down. You're the heir to my grandfather, so don't tell me to back off. This is my business, now!"

Shin shook his head, getting up.

"It's my fucking business, you brat." She growled and grabbed his shoulders, shoving him down again. "We're on this date because you wanted it. If you cared so much about me, you'd let me help you because what's happening can destroy you. I don't think you get how serious this is."

"You can't do anything about this." He murmured, attempting to get up again.

"Why can't I?" Kumiko questioned and this time didn't push him down.

"Everyone has secrets. You should stop now."

"I won't stop! What secrets? Shin, you need to tell me, right now!" She said angrily.

"My dad is stubborn. He thought that the Morioka's company was stable enough and that Azumi and I should be a thing. We were hooked up but I wasn't interested. This disagreement got me angry-"

"Hooked up?"

"We were engaged." Shin said, finally admitting what he didn't want to.

Kumiko stared at him for a long time and he stared back. Her mind flooded itself with questions and then she couldn't take it anymore. Had her grandfather known? Why hadn't Shin told her? Did the guys at school know? Why was she the last one to find out especially since he was courting her now.

She was right, all along. This had been a date she could never predict. He'd blown her straight out of the water. She was an idiot... She should've feared that answer... She really should've. She didn't expect to be so hurt but she was...

"You lost." She mumbled, before breaking inside, turning and leaving.

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**Thankyou to all the people who have left reviews, I love you. :O 3**

**My friend also tried to leave a review, but since it was posted from my computer, it said I reviewed it.**

**Yes, we fail. 3 :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**BAM BITCHESSS. FINALLY DONE. ****:D**

**Details and possible one-shot info at the END.**

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Sheltered beneath the golden guise of deep, dark, chestnut eyes, flawless skin, lengthy lashes, soft pouty lips and pin-straight raven hair was an incubus. A siren's voice was what aided her skill in persuasion and with a good amount of intelligence, it was no surprise that falling victim became quite easy. When armed with your hazy sight and malfunctioning instincts, her bait seems innocent enough, especially because of how much slack seems to be on your side of the line. With a gentle tug or two, you are dealt a blow- a yank both shocking and fierce piercing the roof of your mouth with one swift motion.

With a despondent smile, he decided the analogy was quite fitting and tucked it into a corner of his mind for later. Admittedly, her appearance had played a large part in melting his defenses but he knew he could not shove the blame onto her looks. His downfall was the consequence of his own unresolved darkness and he still found it all quite ironic how she had succeeded in turning him against what he had devoted his entire life to.

_You look like a deer in front of the headlights and I'd like to note that it's unbecoming. I know you're hardly used to have your competence questioned,_ _by a _woman_ no less, so I'll explain it clearly._

"Are you listening to me?"

_I'm not fighting an unwinnable war. All I need is a bit of help, specifically _your _help. Your profession doesn't intimidate me at all, so spare me the lecture and answer me this simple question: _Is approaching you with such an irresistible offer a mistake?

"Yes or no?"

"I heard you loud and clear." He answered, almost scornful with his dismissal. "I'll leave now and you'll have what you want in a couple of hours. Knowing how you feel about our current snare... I'm trusting that you won't grow impatient or hesitant and release him."

Sliding off of the metal table and to his feet, he turned and headed towards the door. The fangs of the malicious glare dug deep into the back of his neck making him smile, again. How foolish she was, throwing away a good chance to start anew, perhaps maybe even to love and for what?- Petty vengeance, or something of that sort. He supposed that made him foolish, too but if this indeed worked, he would gain much, _much_ more than she could ever.

Taking his mobile phone from his pocket, he dialed a familiar number, rejoicing in the pained voice that greeted him.

_You lost._

Paralyzed and breathless, he watched her disappear from his sight. He didn't dare to say anything that may stop her from leaving, he only allowed himself to be consumed by a familiar feeling. It was a feeling that had taken root when he was younger, but he was unsure of where it had been first planted. Home, family, school, peers, friends, or simply within himself, he could not be sure.

Such a feeling only accompanied certain words, striking too deep- the chord of devastation. It did not matter that the words were seldom spoke, somehow they managed to linger beneath the surface but it was a fleeting sensation, never lasting too long. Only when spoken, did they seem truly real.

Loss; plain and simple. That was probably what he hated the most- losing or being proved wrong. Until he had met Kumiko, he was never frequently subject to that loss. Unfortunately, he was never _good_ enough, never _informed_ enough, _strong_ enough, _fast_ enough, _brave_ enough, nor _old_ enough to rival her. And, as life would serve it to him, he had lost to her, again.

He was not stupid. He was very intelligent and he could admit that without being vain about it. He could understand a lot of things without them being said, and he understood this. So, he let the feeling ricochet throughout him, something large and volatile but he welcomed it all the more; willing to understand and welcome what he had been running from the whole time He was not as grown as Kumiko. He still had lots to learn, lots to experience. Whether it be instigating or accepting a game over the woman he loved the most, could only prove that he was childish. He was _still_ somewhat a child. Maybe, once he'd grown into more of a man, he could succeed in taking her back.

He smirked and nodded, touching his suddenly burning lips.

"Looks like..."

_I lost._

"Well, If I'm compared to Shin? Whatchya say?"

The silence was unsettling.

Shaking her head fiercely she mumbled, "It's not about looks or money or anything so superficial! I like you for you!"

A snort of disbelief was sounded from the tall boy and it earned him a mighty glower from the cute girl in front of him. His eyes widened as he saw what he believed to be complete indignant determination to win him over. With a sigh, he rolled his eyes, exaggerating the motion so that his head moved slightly, as well, and opened his arms. Immediately, he was filled with a sense of warmth and he rested his cheek on her head.

"I dunno what yer problem is but I guess I like it."

"Ou." Came the beckoning call from the other side of the window. "Shin-chan is coming." He took a large bite out of his beautifully constructed onigiri. "I say you two go make peace- Ah! Wait! Wait a sec!"

Despair flooded the large boy's insides and it sure as hell was not from his cute little rice ball. Although, the fact that the door had opened to allow the red-haired spectator a full view of the lips and tongues that had engaged in fierce battle on his doorstep, probably had a _whole_ lot to do with it.

"I love you." She whispered sweetly, quite content that her plans to break Shin from his friends had worked so smoothly.

_A problem had surfaced, though..._

"Unbelievable!" Shin groaned, thinking aloud unconsciously during his desperate gasps for air.

For the moment he had ceased his run to catch his breath, as well as curse himself and plan for the upcoming battle. This was a complete and utter mess! He had exhausted every option within his mind and the only conclusion he could come up with was that he would either end up dead, or heavily screwed.

Entering the mansion through the front door seemed a bit too direct, it could be guarded by armed men or plain booby-trapped and that would be the end of his mission then and there. If he decided to be sneaky and climbed over this imposing brick wall, he could sneak his way around and maybe find an open window or something but he'd have no idea where he was or where he wanted to go, either, leaving him to wander aimlessly around until he would encounter something that most likely would not accommodate his fancy.

Kumiko had left with that shitty cop once she had received a call that was a bit too conveniently timed but he could not object, Shinohara had won and Shin's suspicions would be passed off as jealously. The kumi would probably already know the news and have abandoned him.

There was something that threatened to overwhelm him and it possessed his heart, mischievously tossing the organ up into his throat where it pitifully attempted to pump life to the rest of his body, he forced it down and shook his head. No, he would enter through the front door! If his reasoning was right, he would not be killed on the spot. Azumi liked games, being the daughter of a gambler, of course, so she would want to play with him in order to drag the suspense out.

He took a deep breath, stepping out from the shadows and in front of the gate. As his hands gripped the bars, preparing to climb over, they began to open. He grunted, shoving his hands deep within his pockets though he knew that put him in a vulnerable position and proceeded towards the door. That opened, too.

Guards were stationed just like he had suspected but they did not aim to hurt him. They only directed him towards the stairs. He nodded his head in recognition but not thanks, he could never thank anyone working for that greedy lady. Ascending the long flight of stairs that wound so magestically up to the second story of the mansion. The level was dark, all the lights had been shut off. It was probably meant to insert anticipation in his gut, fortunately, it could do no such thing when he was already pretty much consumed by it.

Beneath a door, a bright light was shining, casting a suitably eerie glow onto the floor. It beckoned him and he accepted it's call, trying to keep his footsteps as light as possible. With a slight tap to the door, he flung himself out of the way, fearing that he would be maimed by an oncoming assault. The coast had been deemed clear and he twisted the doorknob, shoving it open so that he could see inside. Peeking around the corner, he caught a sight that made his stomach lurch, panic taking him into it's horrid embrace and moving his unwilling body to step over the threshold.

"Noda..." He called, his voice now a raspy whisper.

Silence was the only thing that reached him besides the tell-tale movement of his friend's eyes to a corner of the room yet to be seen. Instinctively, Shin found himself dropping to his knees and rolling away. Just in time, too as Morioka Azumi and the spiked ball of her hand-held mace came into view, attacking like a maniac. With the absence of matter where Shin had once stood, the metal found nothing to collide with thus throwing her off balance, the mace making a large dent in the wall.

"YOU BASTARD! HOW DARE YOU ATTEMPT TO EVADE ME!" Azumi shreiked, tugging the metal ball out of the wall and turning, a feral expression poisoning her face and her eyes as she began to swing over and over, again, making an 'X' towards the space where Shin lay.

Barely dodging her blows he pulled a sudden feat and made a desperate attempt to somersault backwards. He succeeded, finding his feet on the ground again. With a mighty push, he was standing but he was rid of his new position because the time he had wasted in performing that stunt caught up with him and the spiky metal collided with his left shoulder, causing him to lose a chunk of his skin to the graze.

"Shit!" He groaned, his hand rushing to his clasp his shoulder as he turned and headed back towards the stairs.

Thankfully, he was a much faster runner than his former-fiancee and got the stairs moments before she did. He paused, knowing that in order for this work, he had to time it perfectly. Remembering everything Kyo had taught him, everything he had watched his precious Kumiko do, he ducked at _just_ the right time just as the mace had come swinging. Again, she was thrown off balance by the lack of substance to hit and she flew. His torso turned, arm coming to wrap around her legs and throw her down the stairs or at least, make her fall. Unfortunately, he was a bit too weak and the only thing he accomplished was the latter.

"You'll pay!" She screamed, desperately reaching towards the mace that lay only inches away from the hand it had just left while she fell to the floor.

Shin scrambled, crawling ontop of her and stretching his injured arm out to throw the mace effectively far enough from her reach with his last ounce of willpower. So much action had caused him to lose quite a bit of blood. He continued to pin her down with his dead-weight and the elbow of his good arm. It rested in a position atop her cheek, shoving her face into the ground in a most painful way.

"You do the most unnecessary things." Shin sighed.

"GUARDS! COME HELP ME!" Azumi ordered, her voice louder than the first time.

Loud, thundering footsteps began to approach at a menacing pace. Shin couldn't risk running because then she would get up and pound his skull in but that would happen either way. He could hear his heart thundering in his ears, he could feel his pulse moving his chest. He was so royally screwed!

A dark chuckle came from behind the two, sending shivers up and down Shin's spine. "Guards? I ain't seen no guards. How about you, Tetsu?"

"No, aniki!" Came the faithful reply.

Relief surged throughout the red-haired teen like a tidal wave as he whispered, "You guys..."

In a few moments, he was being tossed aside in the gentlest way a Yakuza knew how to toss a bleeding man and the girl was successfully restrained in Tetsu's arms. Realization struck him and he stood, yelling his thanks as he returned to the room down the hall.

It did not take many steps at all before Shin found himself dropping to his knees in front of the wriggling bound and gagged boy, drenched in red. Pulling the cloth out from Noda's mouth, he heard his friend gasp his name in delight, instantly saying that the blood was fake and the only thing he needed was to be untied. Shin set to it, dutifully unwrapping the boy's restraints as he pondered to himself _why_ Azumi had not cut him up and injured him... It seemed so strange.

"Fuck man... I fell for a psycho." Noda groaned.

"Does that mean thank you?" Shin asked, heavy sarcasm filling his voice.

"Thanks, dude..." Noda acknowledged, standing with the help of Shin. As they reached their full heights simultaneously, his eyes landed on the darkening splotch that now adorned the crimson-coloured fabric. Letting his air out in a hiss he exlaimed, "Yer bleeding like a motherfucker!"

There was a light rumble from Shin, the signs of a laugh. "S'okay. I enjoy battle scars. Come on, let's ditch this place."

"Er... It probably ain't the time but... Why are you dressed up so fancy?" Noda asked, blinking innocently as they stepped across the threshold of the door together. A wistful smile broke out of Shin's face and Noda returned it, patting his buddy on his good shoulder. "Next time let's fall for each other~!"

A shrill scream rang throughout the hall, making both of them stop in their tracks, covered in shadow by the hallway that was not illuminated. They watched as Azumi flew backwards, falling almost in slow motion and then landing with a soft, deep 'thud' on the ground behind her.

"Oujo!" Kyo squeaked as he watched his beloved mistress straddle the girl on the ground, gripping the collar of her expensive dress and yanking it forward.

Azumi's head lolled back in misery as if she was already half-dead and she whimpered as she was dropped back to the floor like a piece of garbage. "I don't think I've met _men_ more despicable than you!" Kumiko shouted to the girl that lay on the floor beneath her hips. "How dare you attack innocent people with threats to kill their loved ones and how _dare_ you utilize your men to carry out the things you are too pitiful to do yourself! You toss them all away like worthless tissues after they have done your bidding and for what? What exactly did you do it for? You're so generic! I want my money, I want my _fucking_ social status! You superficial moron and there is so much more but the only thing that matters is that you..." Kumiko bit her lip, standing and moving backwards. "You tried to destroy everything that Shin loved... His friendships, his relationship with me, his ties with Ooedo and also, a respectful relationship with a Shinohara-san."

There was silence as Kumiko turned her head towards the two figures in the shadows. "I'm still upset that you did not tell me earlier, Shin but I'm glad that you and Noda are all right... You guys, please take care of them." Then she turned to leave, her footsteps being heard as she descended the winding staircase. "Oh and Shin!" She called. "I can say it now! I love you!"

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**_THE NOT-TOO-SHABBY-BUT-STILL-KINDA-SUCKY-END._**

Yer, I _know _it is not mind-blowing but I had to get it out there. It covers all the basics.

THEY SHALL GO AND HAVE HOT SEX NOW. USE YOUR BRILLIANT IMAGINATIONS.

**Ohai, my lovely reader. Read on if you are confused.**

Shinohara helped Azumi escape jail. He did it because Azumi promised him the chance to break the case (homocide, gambling, prison break etc.). Also, he would get Kumiko since Shin was out of the way. Besides liking her, attaining her would mean inside scoops on the Kumi's activities. He fell for Azumi because he had a horribly condescending outlook on women criminals and the way she presented herself just shocked everything right out of him. I guess she sounded very promising...

Besides that, the gang made such a quick arrival because as you know in previous chapters, they were already on alert about Azumi. They kept pretty good tabs on her and _always_ had a bug on Shin's phone.

As for Kumiko, she's got great instincts and thought the way Shinohara called her to pick her up knowing _exactly_ where she was a bit strange, of course.

If you're still reading, YEAH, if you squint there is NodaxAzumi. I think I may write a oneshot for them but who knows.

**Kthxbye. I love you all. :D**

**Leave a review or I'll cry and never make a fic, again. Teehee. Just kidding but leave something all the same.**


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